May 14, 2026 Quick space links
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
- Stoke Space shows pictures of the flight version of its Nova rocket’s first stage, now undergoing final testing
It sounds as if the launch is about three months away, though once again Stoke has not set a date.
- Rocket Lab is secretly shipping a large payload adapter (used to hold satellites on a rocket) from New Zealand to Wallops
The tweet speculates this may be the adapter to be used on the first launch of the new Neutron rocket.
- Firefly touts its scheduled 4th Blue Ghost lunar mission near the Moon’s south pole
It still has to complete two lunar landing missions before this 4th mission can fly.
- NASA provides preliminary mission details for Artemis-3 next year
The key revelation is that SLS will launch with a dummy upper stage. As this mission will stay in low Earth orbit, there is no need for that stage.
- Video of the launch of Venera 10 on May 14, 1975
The lander operated for 65 minutes on the surface of Venus, taking the second picture ever of that surface. It worked in conjunction with Venera-9, which launched a week earlier and took the first picture ever of Venus’s surface.
- Air & Space museum touts two Hubble instruments in its collection, brought back by astronauts in the last repair mission in 2009
The instruments were the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 and COSTAR (which had launched in 1993 and fixed the telescope’s focus problem).
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
- Stoke Space shows pictures of the flight version of its Nova rocket’s first stage, now undergoing final testing
It sounds as if the launch is about three months away, though once again Stoke has not set a date.
- Rocket Lab is secretly shipping a large payload adapter (used to hold satellites on a rocket) from New Zealand to Wallops
The tweet speculates this may be the adapter to be used on the first launch of the new Neutron rocket.
- Firefly touts its scheduled 4th Blue Ghost lunar mission near the Moon’s south pole
It still has to complete two lunar landing missions before this 4th mission can fly.
- NASA provides preliminary mission details for Artemis-3 next year
The key revelation is that SLS will launch with a dummy upper stage. As this mission will stay in low Earth orbit, there is no need for that stage.
- Video of the launch of Venera 10 on May 14, 1975
The lander operated for 65 minutes on the surface of Venus, taking the second picture ever of that surface. It worked in conjunction with Venera-9, which launched a week earlier and took the first picture ever of Venus’s surface.
- Air & Space museum touts two Hubble instruments in its collection, brought back by astronauts in the last repair mission in 2009
The instruments were the Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 and COSTAR (which had launched in 1993 and fixed the telescope’s focus problem).
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Brain terrain on Mars?
Click for original picture. For full image go here.
Cool image time! The picture to the right, cropped and expanded to post here, was taken on April 2, 2026 by the high resolution camera on Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO). Labeled simply as a “terrain sample”, such images are usually taken not as part of any specific research project, but to fill a gap in the camera’s schedule. The camera team needs to take pictures at a regular cadence to maintain its proper temperature.
When they have such a gap, they try to find interesting things to photograph, and usually succeed. In this case we are looking at what I think the scientists dub “brain terrain,” a feature unique to Mars that is thought related to near surface ice and its sublimation, though at present the origins of brain terrain remain murky. The scale is approximately 100 meters across the width of this picture.
However, the location of this brain terrain makes any conclusions about its origin difficult.
» Read more
Click for original picture. For full image go here.
Cool image time! The picture to the right, cropped and expanded to post here, was taken on April 2, 2026 by the high resolution camera on Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO). Labeled simply as a “terrain sample”, such images are usually taken not as part of any specific research project, but to fill a gap in the camera’s schedule. The camera team needs to take pictures at a regular cadence to maintain its proper temperature.
When they have such a gap, they try to find interesting things to photograph, and usually succeed. In this case we are looking at what I think the scientists dub “brain terrain,” a feature unique to Mars that is thought related to near surface ice and its sublimation, though at present the origins of brain terrain remain murky. The scale is approximately 100 meters across the width of this picture.
However, the location of this brain terrain makes any conclusions about its origin difficult.
» Read more
Japanese company NEC initiates its own orbital tug project
Having won a grant from Japan’s $6.6 billion strategic fund (designed to encourage private enterprise in space), the Japanese company NEC Corporation has now begun work on its own commercial orbital tug, which it dubs an Orbital Transfer Vehicle (OTV).
Moving forward, NEC plans to conduct market feasibility studies, conceptual design, and demonstrations for OTVs by the end of fiscal year 2027 to clarify the required functions and other specifications. Following this, NEC plans to begin development of a demonstration model in fiscal year 2028, with the goal of launching it and conducting in-space demonstrations in fiscal year 2032, and aims to bring the technology to practical use in the future.
While the overall goal makes sense, the timetable seems far too slow. By the time NEC is ready with its operational OTV in 2032, at least a half dozen tugs will have been in operation for at least three to five years. Already several tugs have flown missions, with several more in the pipeline. Moreover, these companies have found less demand for tugs than expected, and have been repurposing their technology to other purposes.
Regardless, it does appear Japan is beginning to use this strategic fund as intended, to encourage the development of a private space industry, independent of its government space agency JAXA.
Having won a grant from Japan’s $6.6 billion strategic fund (designed to encourage private enterprise in space), the Japanese company NEC Corporation has now begun work on its own commercial orbital tug, which it dubs an Orbital Transfer Vehicle (OTV).
Moving forward, NEC plans to conduct market feasibility studies, conceptual design, and demonstrations for OTVs by the end of fiscal year 2027 to clarify the required functions and other specifications. Following this, NEC plans to begin development of a demonstration model in fiscal year 2028, with the goal of launching it and conducting in-space demonstrations in fiscal year 2032, and aims to bring the technology to practical use in the future.
While the overall goal makes sense, the timetable seems far too slow. By the time NEC is ready with its operational OTV in 2032, at least a half dozen tugs will have been in operation for at least three to five years. Already several tugs have flown missions, with several more in the pipeline. Moreover, these companies have found less demand for tugs than expected, and have been repurposing their technology to other purposes.
Regardless, it does appear Japan is beginning to use this strategic fund as intended, to encourage the development of a private space industry, independent of its government space agency JAXA.
Now available in hardback and paperback as well as ebook!
From the press release: In this ground-breaking new history of early America, historian Robert Zimmerman not only exposes the lie behind The New York Times 1619 Project that falsely claims slavery is central to the history of the United States, he also provides profound lessons about the nature of human societies, lessons important for Americans today as well as for all future settlers on Mars and elsewhere in space.
Conscious Choice: The origins of slavery in America and why it matters today and for our future in outer space, is a riveting page-turning story that documents how slavery slowly became pervasive in the southern British colonies of North America, colonies founded by a people and culture that not only did not allow slavery but in every way were hostile to the practice.
Conscious Choice does more however. In telling the tragic history of the Virginia colony and the rise of slavery there, Zimmerman lays out the proper path for creating healthy societies in places like the Moon and Mars.
“Zimmerman’s ground-breaking history provides every future generation the basic framework for establishing new societies on other worlds. We would be wise to heed what he says.” —Robert Zubrin, founder of the Mars Society.
All editions are available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and all book vendors, with the ebook priced at $5.99 before discount. All editions can also be purchased direct from the ebook publisher, ebookit, in which case you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
Autographed printed copies are also available at discount directly from the author (hardback $29.95; paperback $14.95; Shipping cost for either: $6.00). Just send an email to zimmerman @ nasw dot org.
Europa Clipper and Juice make simultaneous UV light observatoins of interstellar comet 3I/Atlas
Overview of November 2025 observations.
Click for original image.
By viewing interstellar comet 3I/Atlas when it was between the Jupiter probes Europa Clipper and Juice (on their way to Jupiter) in November 2025, the science teams for both were able to get a 360 degree view of the comet in ultraviolet wavelengths.
“As the comet passed between Juice and Europa Clipper, we were able to informally coordinate observations between the two spacecraft,” said Dr. Kurt Retherford, the principal investigator of Juice-UVS and Europa-UVS. “Crucially, we observed hydrogen, oxygen and carbon emissions. These elements are produced when gases escaping the comet’s nucleus break apart into atoms when exposed to sunlight.”
…“Observing the interstellar comet was some exciting bonus science. The resulting rare and unique dataset includes gas emissions and scattered dust,” said SwRI’s Dr. Philippa Molyneux, co-deputy principal investigator for the Juice-UVS instrument. “This was the first time we’ve had simultaneous direct views of a comet’s coma of escaping gas from two directions. Europa Clipper showed us the night side of the comet, with a great deal of scattered dust, while Juice imaged mostly glowing gas on the day side.”
…The researchers found higher levels of carbon emissions from 3I/ATLAS than expected early on, especially in comparison to typical comets from our solar system, corroborating similar findings through other observations about the interstellar comet’s origin and composition. Observing the trends of emissions over several days revealed how the ratios of these molecules changed and how the comet evolved during its journey through our solar system.
These results confirm once again that while Comet 3I/Atlas is from outside our solar system and has some unique features, it is still remarkably similar to ordinary comets found within our solar system.
Overview of November 2025 observations.
Click for original image.
By viewing interstellar comet 3I/Atlas when it was between the Jupiter probes Europa Clipper and Juice (on their way to Jupiter) in November 2025, the science teams for both were able to get a 360 degree view of the comet in ultraviolet wavelengths.
“As the comet passed between Juice and Europa Clipper, we were able to informally coordinate observations between the two spacecraft,” said Dr. Kurt Retherford, the principal investigator of Juice-UVS and Europa-UVS. “Crucially, we observed hydrogen, oxygen and carbon emissions. These elements are produced when gases escaping the comet’s nucleus break apart into atoms when exposed to sunlight.”
…“Observing the interstellar comet was some exciting bonus science. The resulting rare and unique dataset includes gas emissions and scattered dust,” said SwRI’s Dr. Philippa Molyneux, co-deputy principal investigator for the Juice-UVS instrument. “This was the first time we’ve had simultaneous direct views of a comet’s coma of escaping gas from two directions. Europa Clipper showed us the night side of the comet, with a great deal of scattered dust, while Juice imaged mostly glowing gas on the day side.”
…The researchers found higher levels of carbon emissions from 3I/ATLAS than expected early on, especially in comparison to typical comets from our solar system, corroborating similar findings through other observations about the interstellar comet’s origin and composition. Observing the trends of emissions over several days revealed how the ratios of these molecules changed and how the comet evolved during its journey through our solar system.
These results confirm once again that while Comet 3I/Atlas is from outside our solar system and has some unique features, it is still remarkably similar to ordinary comets found within our solar system.
Pharmaceutical company to use Varda’s capsules to manufacture heart drugs in space
Varda’s fifth capsule after landing on January 29, 2026
The pharmaceutical company United Therapeutics Corporation has purchased space on an unspecified number of future Varda’s recoverable capsules so that it can manufacture pulmonary drugs in space.
Through the collaboration, Varda and United Therapeutics will conduct pharmaceutical processing of small molecule medicines for pulmonary disease aboard Varda’s orbital manufacturing and reentry platform during multiple missions to low Earth orbit.
The companies will utilize microgravity’s influence on the structure and crystallization properties of therapeutic compounds in pursuit of novel formulations that may improve stability, bioavailability, and other delivery characteristics. The first compounds to be analyzed onboard Varda spacecraft will likely be focused on therapies for patients living with life-threatening pulmonary diseases.
Varda has a deal in Australia to land 20 more capsules through 2028. This deal helps fill the payload space on those capsules.
As I have noted repeatedly, there is money to be made manufacturing drugs in weightlessness for later sale back on Earth, a reality that NASA has blocked on ISS for decades. Varda is now grabbing that market, which is also why a lot of investment capital has become available for a whole slew of proposed competing recoverable capsule companies.
Varda’s fifth capsule after landing on January 29, 2026
The pharmaceutical company United Therapeutics Corporation has purchased space on an unspecified number of future Varda’s recoverable capsules so that it can manufacture pulmonary drugs in space.
Through the collaboration, Varda and United Therapeutics will conduct pharmaceutical processing of small molecule medicines for pulmonary disease aboard Varda’s orbital manufacturing and reentry platform during multiple missions to low Earth orbit.
The companies will utilize microgravity’s influence on the structure and crystallization properties of therapeutic compounds in pursuit of novel formulations that may improve stability, bioavailability, and other delivery characteristics. The first compounds to be analyzed onboard Varda spacecraft will likely be focused on therapies for patients living with life-threatening pulmonary diseases.
Varda has a deal in Australia to land 20 more capsules through 2028. This deal helps fill the payload space on those capsules.
As I have noted repeatedly, there is money to be made manufacturing drugs in weightlessness for later sale back on Earth, a reality that NASA has blocked on ISS for decades. Varda is now grabbing that market, which is also why a lot of investment capital has become available for a whole slew of proposed competing recoverable capsule companies.
Leaving Earth: Space Stations, Rival Superpowers, and the Quest for Interplanetary Travel, can be purchased as an ebook everywhere for only $3.99 (before discount) at amazon, Barnes & Noble, all ebook vendors, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit.
If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big oppressive tech companies and I get a bigger cut much sooner.
Winner of the 2003 Eugene M. Emme Award of the American Astronautical Society.
"Leaving Earth is one of the best and certainly the most comprehensive summary of our drive into space that I have ever read. It will be invaluable to future scholars because it will tell them how the next chapter of human history opened." -- Arthur C. Clarke
Chinese pseudo-company launches its expendable Zhuque-2 rocket
The Chinese pseudo-company Landspace successfully placed an experimental payload into orbit today (May 14th in China), its expendable Zhuque-2 rocket lifting off from the Jiuquan spaceport in northwest China.
Video of the launch (found by BtB’s stringer Jay) can be seen here. Zhuque-2 was the first methane-fueled rocket to reach orbit, but it is not reusable, as is Landspace’s larger Zhuque-3 rocket that has made one failed attempt to land its first stage. The company hopes to try again before the summer.
The leaders in the 2026 launch race:
56 SpaceX
26 China
8 Russia
6 Rocket Lab
For the third straight year SpaceX leads the entire world combined in total launches, 56 to 47.
The Chinese pseudo-company Landspace successfully placed an experimental payload into orbit today (May 14th in China), its expendable Zhuque-2 rocket lifting off from the Jiuquan spaceport in northwest China.
Video of the launch (found by BtB’s stringer Jay) can be seen here. Zhuque-2 was the first methane-fueled rocket to reach orbit, but it is not reusable, as is Landspace’s larger Zhuque-3 rocket that has made one failed attempt to land its first stage. The company hopes to try again before the summer.
The leaders in the 2026 launch race:
56 SpaceX
26 China
8 Russia
6 Rocket Lab
For the third straight year SpaceX leads the entire world combined in total launches, 56 to 47.
May 13, 2026 Zimmerman/Batchelor podcast
Embedded below the fold in two parts.
To listen to all of John Batchelor’s podcasts, go here.
» Read more
Embedded below the fold in two parts.
To listen to all of John Batchelor’s podcasts, go here.
» Read more
The Warning – Enter Sandman
In 2017 I posted an evening pause of this band playing this same song, when Daniela (on guitar) was 14 years old, Paulina (on drums) was 12 years old, and Alejandra (on bass guitar) was 9 yrs old. This version is from their 2025 tour in Mexico (where they are from). To put it mildly, they are a bit older.
Hat tip Richard Reese.
May 13, 2026 Quick space links
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
- Video of Japan’s HTV-X1 cargo capsule, still in orbit at an altitude of 376 kilometers
It launched in October 2025, docked with ISS, and then undocked in March 2026. It will be de-orbited later this month over the Pacific.
- China touts its dedication to climate by describing its carbon monitoring equipment launched recently to its space station
Pure propaganda. As Jay correctly notes, “China is the worst polluter in the world.”
- On this day in 1982 the first crew to visit the Soviet Union’s new Salyut-7 space station was launched
They completed a 211 day mission (a record at the time). I describe their mission extensively in my book Leaving Earth. Lots of drama.
- Video of the first carry flight of Russia’s Buran space shuttle copy, which took place on May 13, 1989
They used an Antonov An-225 Mriya strategic airlift cargo aircraft.
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
- Video of Japan’s HTV-X1 cargo capsule, still in orbit at an altitude of 376 kilometers
It launched in October 2025, docked with ISS, and then undocked in March 2026. It will be de-orbited later this month over the Pacific.
- China touts its dedication to climate by describing its carbon monitoring equipment launched recently to its space station
Pure propaganda. As Jay correctly notes, “China is the worst polluter in the world.”
- On this day in 1982 the first crew to visit the Soviet Union’s new Salyut-7 space station was launched
They completed a 211 day mission (a record at the time). I describe their mission extensively in my book Leaving Earth. Lots of drama.
- Video of the first carry flight of Russia’s Buran space shuttle copy, which took place on May 13, 1989
They used an Antonov An-225 Mriya strategic airlift cargo aircraft.
Corroding glacial features inside Martian crater
Glacier country in the Martian northern mid-latitudes.
Click for original image.
Today’s cool image gives us another nice example of the ample availability of near surface ice on Mars, even if it might take a bit of processing to extract it from the dust and soil. The picture to the right, rotated, cropped, and reduced to post here, was taken on March 31, 2026 by the high resolution camera on Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO).
The picture captures in detail most of the floor of a 5.8-mile-wide unnamed crater, located in the northern mid-latitudes of Mars, in a 2000-mile-long strip I like to call glacier country, because practically every image taken there shows extensive glacial features. The white dot on the overview map above shows the location within that strip, with the inset showing the full crater, as well as the surrounding terrain.
The softness of this landscape strongly suggests a topsoil well impregnated with ice. The crater’s rim is itself very soft and subdued, suggesting melting and sublimation over time.
The material in the floor of the crater resembles peeling paint, which in this case suggests the ice there has been sublimating away as well. Nonetheless, there remains a lot under the surface. Future Martian colonists will certainly come to this region to gather ice for their own purposes.
Glacier country in the Martian northern mid-latitudes.
Click for original image.
Today’s cool image gives us another nice example of the ample availability of near surface ice on Mars, even if it might take a bit of processing to extract it from the dust and soil. The picture to the right, rotated, cropped, and reduced to post here, was taken on March 31, 2026 by the high resolution camera on Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO).
The picture captures in detail most of the floor of a 5.8-mile-wide unnamed crater, located in the northern mid-latitudes of Mars, in a 2000-mile-long strip I like to call glacier country, because practically every image taken there shows extensive glacial features. The white dot on the overview map above shows the location within that strip, with the inset showing the full crater, as well as the surrounding terrain.
The softness of this landscape strongly suggests a topsoil well impregnated with ice. The crater’s rim is itself very soft and subdued, suggesting melting and sublimation over time.
The material in the floor of the crater resembles peeling paint, which in this case suggests the ice there has been sublimating away as well. Nonetheless, there remains a lot under the surface. Future Martian colonists will certainly come to this region to gather ice for their own purposes.
New cost estimate for Trump’s Golden Dome exceeds $1 trillion over 20 years
According to the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) new estimates, the cost to build Trump’s proposed Golden Dome defense plan will be about $1.2 trillion over the next 20 years, double what the CBO predicted last year and more than six times what the program’s head has predicted.
The Congressional Budget Office issued an updated estimate today of the cost of President Trump’s Golden Dome missile defense system. Lacking detailed data from the Administration, CBO based its analysis on the capabilities called for in Trump’s January 2025 Executive Order and concluded the total cost over 20 years is $1.2 trillion, about twice its estimate last year, with the bulk of it for Space-Based Interceptors.
Trump issued the Iron Dome for America Executive Order on January 27, 2025, seven days after his second term began. He soon renamed it Golden Dome in part to distinguish it from Israel’s Iron Dome system which has more limited capabilities. Trump appointed Gen. Michael Guetlein to lead the project and in an Oval Office meeting on May 20, 2025, said it would cost $175 billion and be completed in three years, before he leaves office.
By then CBO had estimated the cost at $524 billion based on information available at the time.
Guetlein has since raised his estimate to $185 billion, but it is widely viewed as far too low.
Several important points: First, the CBO’s cost estimates are usually wrong, in either direction, which means the cost could be a lot less, or a lot more. Odds are that in this case its estimate is trending in the right direction. Guetlein’s cost estimate is absurdly too low.
Second, the high cost helps explain why a lot of investment money is pouring into a lot of new space startups, for both rocket and satellite companies. Wall Street sees the federal government spending a lot of money on Golden Dome, and wants to get into the action. For the same reason this is why a lot of space companies have shifted their focus from civilian projects to the military.
Finally, the idea of Golden Dome is perfectly reasonable, as its concept has already been proven both by the U.S.’s Patriot missile system and Israel’s Iron Dome. The implementation however is going to be bad, because the people in Washington being asked to do it have a terrible track record. They routinely waste money and manage projects badly.
According to the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) new estimates, the cost to build Trump’s proposed Golden Dome defense plan will be about $1.2 trillion over the next 20 years, double what the CBO predicted last year and more than six times what the program’s head has predicted.
The Congressional Budget Office issued an updated estimate today of the cost of President Trump’s Golden Dome missile defense system. Lacking detailed data from the Administration, CBO based its analysis on the capabilities called for in Trump’s January 2025 Executive Order and concluded the total cost over 20 years is $1.2 trillion, about twice its estimate last year, with the bulk of it for Space-Based Interceptors.
Trump issued the Iron Dome for America Executive Order on January 27, 2025, seven days after his second term began. He soon renamed it Golden Dome in part to distinguish it from Israel’s Iron Dome system which has more limited capabilities. Trump appointed Gen. Michael Guetlein to lead the project and in an Oval Office meeting on May 20, 2025, said it would cost $175 billion and be completed in three years, before he leaves office.
By then CBO had estimated the cost at $524 billion based on information available at the time.
Guetlein has since raised his estimate to $185 billion, but it is widely viewed as far too low.
Several important points: First, the CBO’s cost estimates are usually wrong, in either direction, which means the cost could be a lot less, or a lot more. Odds are that in this case its estimate is trending in the right direction. Guetlein’s cost estimate is absurdly too low.
Second, the high cost helps explain why a lot of investment money is pouring into a lot of new space startups, for both rocket and satellite companies. Wall Street sees the federal government spending a lot of money on Golden Dome, and wants to get into the action. For the same reason this is why a lot of space companies have shifted their focus from civilian projects to the military.
Finally, the idea of Golden Dome is perfectly reasonable, as its concept has already been proven both by the U.S.’s Patriot missile system and Israel’s Iron Dome. The implementation however is going to be bad, because the people in Washington being asked to do it have a terrible track record. They routinely waste money and manage projects badly.
ESA announces new round of funding for new rocket companies
Capitalism in space: The European Space Agency (ESA) yesterday announced a new round in its Boost! program to provide new startup rocket companies funding.
The new round will accept new submissions through 2028. The program is designed to encourage the development of private and independent rocket companies, competing for market share, with the added ability to provide ESA its needed launch services. What makes this ESA program different than all its previous rocket programs is that ESA does not own or control the rockets. It is helping to get these companies started, and will simply then be a customer buying the product from them once operation. Ownership will belong to the companies, not ESA.
To emphasize the ownership point, to get funding under this program “requires private co-funding. For every euro invested by ESA in commercial space businesses, often more than five euros are leveraged from private investors.”
So far ESA has provided funding to eleven different European startups, including Isar Aerospace, Rocket Factory Augsburg, and PLD, all three of which hope to make their first orbital launch this year. This new round is being offered to these companies and any new ones that might come forward. Of the 110 million euros so far allocated 20 million euros remains available for distribution.
Capitalism in space: The European Space Agency (ESA) yesterday announced a new round in its Boost! program to provide new startup rocket companies funding.
The new round will accept new submissions through 2028. The program is designed to encourage the development of private and independent rocket companies, competing for market share, with the added ability to provide ESA its needed launch services. What makes this ESA program different than all its previous rocket programs is that ESA does not own or control the rockets. It is helping to get these companies started, and will simply then be a customer buying the product from them once operation. Ownership will belong to the companies, not ESA.
To emphasize the ownership point, to get funding under this program “requires private co-funding. For every euro invested by ESA in commercial space businesses, often more than five euros are leveraged from private investors.”
So far ESA has provided funding to eleven different European startups, including Isar Aerospace, Rocket Factory Augsburg, and PLD, all three of which hope to make their first orbital launch this year. This new round is being offered to these companies and any new ones that might come forward. Of the 110 million euros so far allocated 20 million euros remains available for distribution.
AST SpaceMobile reaffirms its goal to launch 45 Bluebird satellites by the end of ’26
Despite the launch failure last month by Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket, causing the loss of its satellite, AST SpaceMobile in its most recent quarterly report this week reaffirmed its goal to get 45 Bluebird satellites into orbit by the end of 2026.
In AST SpaceMobile’s 10-Q filed with the SEC on Monday, the company said the loss is expected to be in line with the carrying value of the satellite, in the range of $155 million to $160 million. The company plans for an asset write-off in the second quarter of 2026. The company also said in the 10-Q it had launch insurance coverage that covered a portion of the satellite and launch costs and has filed claims.
“At the end of the day, remember, we have 33 satellites in advanced stages of production at the factory. So it was a loss, we’re on to the next,” Wisniewski told investors. He added that the company is working closely with Blue Origin and is “optimistic” about New Glenn returning to the launch pad soon.
The company’s next launch is with SpaceX on a Falcon 9 rocket that will launch three satellites — BlueBirds 8, 9 and 10. Wisniewski confirmed the company has contracted launch capacity to meet its target of deploying 45 satellites by the end of this year. He also mentioned that five BlueBirds would fit in a United Launch Alliance Vulcan configuration, mentioning the company has been developing other heavy launch providers outside of SpaceX and Blue Origin.[emphasis mine]
The highlighted sentence suggests the company is also negotiating new contracts with both Arianespace’s Ariane-6 rocket and India’s LVM3 rocket. It has already used the latter on one launch successfully.
Nonetheless, the only company with the capability of ramping up enough launches quickly this year to meet this goal will be SpaceX. Expect that company to get more Bluebird launches in 2026.
Despite the launch failure last month by Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket, causing the loss of its satellite, AST SpaceMobile in its most recent quarterly report this week reaffirmed its goal to get 45 Bluebird satellites into orbit by the end of 2026.
In AST SpaceMobile’s 10-Q filed with the SEC on Monday, the company said the loss is expected to be in line with the carrying value of the satellite, in the range of $155 million to $160 million. The company plans for an asset write-off in the second quarter of 2026. The company also said in the 10-Q it had launch insurance coverage that covered a portion of the satellite and launch costs and has filed claims.
“At the end of the day, remember, we have 33 satellites in advanced stages of production at the factory. So it was a loss, we’re on to the next,” Wisniewski told investors. He added that the company is working closely with Blue Origin and is “optimistic” about New Glenn returning to the launch pad soon.
The company’s next launch is with SpaceX on a Falcon 9 rocket that will launch three satellites — BlueBirds 8, 9 and 10. Wisniewski confirmed the company has contracted launch capacity to meet its target of deploying 45 satellites by the end of this year. He also mentioned that five BlueBirds would fit in a United Launch Alliance Vulcan configuration, mentioning the company has been developing other heavy launch providers outside of SpaceX and Blue Origin.[emphasis mine]
The highlighted sentence suggests the company is also negotiating new contracts with both Arianespace’s Ariane-6 rocket and India’s LVM3 rocket. It has already used the latter on one launch successfully.
Nonetheless, the only company with the capability of ramping up enough launches quickly this year to meet this goal will be SpaceX. Expect that company to get more Bluebird launches in 2026.
The 12th Starship/Superheavy test orbital flight now scheduled for May 19, 2026
Starship/Superheavy (version 3) on launchpad
SpaceX yesterday announced that the 12th orbital test flight of its Starship/Superheavy rocket is now scheduled for May 19, 2026, with a launch window opening at 5:30 pm (Central).
The mission will be also be the first flight of what SpaceX calls Version 3 of both the booster and the spaceship, will include the first use of the Raptor-3 engine, and the first use of a completely redesigned launchpad.
The flight test’s primary goal will be to demonstrate each of these new pieces in the flight environment for the first time, with each element of the Starship architecture featuring significant redesigns to enable full and rapid reuse that incorporate learnings from years of development and test.
The booster’s primary test objective will be executing a successful launch, ascent, stage separation, boostback burn, and landing burn at an offshore landing point in the Gulf of America. As this is the first flight test of a significantly redesigned vehicle, the booster will not attempt a return to the launch site for catch.
The Starship upper stage will target multiple in-space and reentry objectives, including the deployment of 22 Starlink simulators, similar in size to next-generation Starlink satellites. The last two satellites deployed will scan Starship’s heat shield and transmit imagery down to operators to test methods of analyzing Starship’s heat shield readiness for return to launch site on future missions. Several tiles on Starship have been painted white to simulate missing tiles and serve as imaging targets in the test. The Starlink simulators will be on the same suborbital trajectory as Starship. A relight of a single Raptor engine while in space is also planned.
As an added potential test-to-failure, the company has also removed a single heat shield tile to test how Starship performs under this failure scenerio. The flight plan will be the same as the previous flights, designed to come down in the Indian Ocean.
A detailed description about the upgrades to Starship, Superheavy, and the ground systems can be found here.
The company will broadcast the launch live, which I will embed on Behind the Black once available.
Starship/Superheavy (version 3) on launchpad
SpaceX yesterday announced that the 12th orbital test flight of its Starship/Superheavy rocket is now scheduled for May 19, 2026, with a launch window opening at 5:30 pm (Central).
The mission will be also be the first flight of what SpaceX calls Version 3 of both the booster and the spaceship, will include the first use of the Raptor-3 engine, and the first use of a completely redesigned launchpad.
The flight test’s primary goal will be to demonstrate each of these new pieces in the flight environment for the first time, with each element of the Starship architecture featuring significant redesigns to enable full and rapid reuse that incorporate learnings from years of development and test.
The booster’s primary test objective will be executing a successful launch, ascent, stage separation, boostback burn, and landing burn at an offshore landing point in the Gulf of America. As this is the first flight test of a significantly redesigned vehicle, the booster will not attempt a return to the launch site for catch.
The Starship upper stage will target multiple in-space and reentry objectives, including the deployment of 22 Starlink simulators, similar in size to next-generation Starlink satellites. The last two satellites deployed will scan Starship’s heat shield and transmit imagery down to operators to test methods of analyzing Starship’s heat shield readiness for return to launch site on future missions. Several tiles on Starship have been painted white to simulate missing tiles and serve as imaging targets in the test. The Starlink simulators will be on the same suborbital trajectory as Starship. A relight of a single Raptor engine while in space is also planned.
As an added potential test-to-failure, the company has also removed a single heat shield tile to test how Starship performs under this failure scenerio. The flight plan will be the same as the previous flights, designed to come down in the Indian Ocean.
A detailed description about the upgrades to Starship, Superheavy, and the ground systems can be found here.
The company will broadcast the launch live, which I will embed on Behind the Black once available.
SpaceX kind of confirms rumor it is considering purchasing 136,000 acres in Louisiana
In a tweet yesterday SpaceX sort of confirmed the rumor reported here last week that it is considering purchasing a giant 200-plus square mile plot (about 136,000 acres) on the south coast of Louisiana near the unincorporated town of Pecan Island.
It’s no secret that we intend to launch Starship a lot, targeting thousands of flights per year. That cadence will require the ability to launch from many different locations, so we are constantly exploring to find viable sites to expand Starship operations in the future, both domestically and internationally
This comment was in response to a tweet touting this rumor. Note that SpaceX’s comment is somewhat vague. It says the company is searching for additional launch locations for Starship, but does not say specifically if this Louisiana plot is one of them.
I suspect it is, based on all the known facts. The company is just being coy, likely because negotiations are still on-going. If so, the tweet tells us that if purchased SpaceX intends to use the site as a future spaceport. And because of its size, it will likely also install Raptor-3 engine test stands as well as its planned data-center satellite manufacturing, consolidating some operations in one location.
Hat tip BtB’s stringer Jay.
In a tweet yesterday SpaceX sort of confirmed the rumor reported here last week that it is considering purchasing a giant 200-plus square mile plot (about 136,000 acres) on the south coast of Louisiana near the unincorporated town of Pecan Island.
It’s no secret that we intend to launch Starship a lot, targeting thousands of flights per year. That cadence will require the ability to launch from many different locations, so we are constantly exploring to find viable sites to expand Starship operations in the future, both domestically and internationally
This comment was in response to a tweet touting this rumor. Note that SpaceX’s comment is somewhat vague. It says the company is searching for additional launch locations for Starship, but does not say specifically if this Louisiana plot is one of them.
I suspect it is, based on all the known facts. The company is just being coy, likely because negotiations are still on-going. If so, the tweet tells us that if purchased SpaceX intends to use the site as a future spaceport. And because of its size, it will likely also install Raptor-3 engine test stands as well as its planned data-center satellite manufacturing, consolidating some operations in one location.
Hat tip BtB’s stringer Jay.
May 12, 2026 Zimmerman/Batchelor podcast on so-called Moon race between the U.S. and China
John Batchelor asked me today to do bonus nine-minute segment on the eve of the Trump-Xi summit in China to discuss the “so-called Moon race” to get back to the Moon first. I have embedded that segment below. I start out by calling it “a fraud.”
» Read more
John Batchelor asked me today to do bonus nine-minute segment on the eve of the Trump-Xi summit in China to discuss the “so-called Moon race” to get back to the Moon first. I have embedded that segment below. I start out by calling it “a fraud.”
» Read more
Canadian Brass – Bach’s Toccata & Fugue in D minor
An evening pause: Written for the organ, but it works I think even better in brass.
Hat tip Willi Kusche.
May 12, 2026 Quick space links
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
- Second Angara official sentenced to seven years in absentia for fraud
The first was arrested. This guy is apparently still “a fugitive in Cyprus.”
- Viasat releases amazing photo of its ViaSat-3 F2 satellite with fully deployed large reflector
Taken 22,236 miles above the Earth, with the Earth in the background.
- On this day in 2009, the space shuttle Atlantis launched on the final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission
At the time it was hoped the mission would extend Hubble for five more years. It is now seventeen years later and the telescope is still working, though it is increasingly on the edge of survival.
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
- Second Angara official sentenced to seven years in absentia for fraud
The first was arrested. This guy is apparently still “a fugitive in Cyprus.”
- Viasat releases amazing photo of its ViaSat-3 F2 satellite with fully deployed large reflector
Taken 22,236 miles above the Earth, with the Earth in the background.
- On this day in 2009, the space shuttle Atlantis launched on the final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission
At the time it was hoped the mission would extend Hubble for five more years. It is now seventeen years later and the telescope is still working, though it is increasingly on the edge of survival.
Curiosity looks closely at the broken slab that had been stuck on its drill bit
Click for original image.
As expected, the science team for the Mars rover hasdecided before moving on it would take a close look at the 28 pound slab of rock that had been stuck on its drill bit and when finally dropped free broken into several pieces when it hit the ground.
The top picture to the right, cropped and reduced to post here, shows that entire rock, labeled Atacama by the science team. The two insets below are close-ups of the delicate layering at the rock’s left edge as well as the drill hole itself. From team’s update today:
The highest-priority activities after liberating the drill included imaging the drill with Mastcam and ChemCam RMI, and imaging into the now-empty drill hole with MAHLI (the image above). The science team made the most of the freshly-broken surfaces created when Atacama fell back to Mars, and the freshly-exposed sand once hidden underneath Atacama.
The exposed sand is off camera, to the right. Expect a paper published about that sand, buried likely for millions of years, sometime in the next year or so.
The delicate flutes at the rock’s left edge are somewhat common rock features seen by Curiosity, made possible by Mars’ thin atmosphere and its one-third Earth gravity. On Earth the gravity and weather generally destroys such things. On Mars the lack of violent weather and light gravity allows them to form, and the thin wind even helps in their formation.
Click for original image.
As expected, the science team for the Mars rover hasdecided before moving on it would take a close look at the 28 pound slab of rock that had been stuck on its drill bit and when finally dropped free broken into several pieces when it hit the ground.
The top picture to the right, cropped and reduced to post here, shows that entire rock, labeled Atacama by the science team. The two insets below are close-ups of the delicate layering at the rock’s left edge as well as the drill hole itself. From team’s update today:
The highest-priority activities after liberating the drill included imaging the drill with Mastcam and ChemCam RMI, and imaging into the now-empty drill hole with MAHLI (the image above). The science team made the most of the freshly-broken surfaces created when Atacama fell back to Mars, and the freshly-exposed sand once hidden underneath Atacama.
The exposed sand is off camera, to the right. Expect a paper published about that sand, buried likely for millions of years, sometime in the next year or so.
The delicate flutes at the rock’s left edge are somewhat common rock features seen by Curiosity, made possible by Mars’ thin atmosphere and its one-third Earth gravity. On Earth the gravity and weather generally destroys such things. On Mars the lack of violent weather and light gravity allows them to form, and the thin wind even helps in their formation.
SpaceX and Google negotiating deal to launch data centers into space
Though few details have been confirmed, according to the Wall Street Journal SpaceX and Google are in advanced negotiations to launch data centers into space.
We don’t know if these data centers will be part of a SpaceX/Google partnership, or whether Google is merely negotiating a SpaceX launch deal to place its own data centers in orbit. Nor do we know if this deal will use SpaceX’s Falcon rockets, or is aimed at using Starship when operational. Neither would surprise me. Nor would it be surprising if both occur.
The story is in linked to SpaceX’s impending initial public stock offering (IPO), expected to the biggest in history.
Though few details have been confirmed, according to the Wall Street Journal SpaceX and Google are in advanced negotiations to launch data centers into space.
We don’t know if these data centers will be part of a SpaceX/Google partnership, or whether Google is merely negotiating a SpaceX launch deal to place its own data centers in orbit. Nor do we know if this deal will use SpaceX’s Falcon rockets, or is aimed at using Starship when operational. Neither would surprise me. Nor would it be surprising if both occur.
The story is in linked to SpaceX’s impending initial public stock offering (IPO), expected to the biggest in history.
OHB joins Dassault’s project to build a reusable mini-shuttle
Vortex-S with service module attached. Click for original image.
The German aerospace company OHB has now joined with France’s Dassault Aviation in its project to build Vortex, a reusable mini-shuttle that could be used to supply cargo to the future commercial space stations presently under development.
An initial subscale demonstrator of the spaceplane, called the VORTEX-D, is being developed by the company with support from the French Ministry of the Armed Forces. During a 25 June 2025 hearing of the French National Assembly’s Committee on National Defence and the Armed Forces, it was revealed that the demonstrator is expected to be launched in 2028 and has a total project cost of €70 million, with Dassault providing more than half of the funding and the remainder coming from the French government.
The VORTEX-S is expected to follow the VORTEX-D demonstrator. This larger, more complex variant will be developed in partnership with OHB following the finalisation of the 11 May agreement, as the companies seek to secure ESA backing for the project. According to the release announcing the partnership, discussions are also underway with other major European space companies to “expand the team.”
Dassault will remain the lead contractor, building the mini-shuttle. OHB will build the service module. The hope is that later versions of Vortex could also ferry crews to and from space.
This project started in 2023, and initially hoped to do the first test mission to ISS in 2026. That test flight is now targeting 2029, with later missions slipping beyond 2031 and now targeting missions to one of the new stations replacing ISS.
Vortex-S with service module attached. Click for original image.
The German aerospace company OHB has now joined with France’s Dassault Aviation in its project to build Vortex, a reusable mini-shuttle that could be used to supply cargo to the future commercial space stations presently under development.
An initial subscale demonstrator of the spaceplane, called the VORTEX-D, is being developed by the company with support from the French Ministry of the Armed Forces. During a 25 June 2025 hearing of the French National Assembly’s Committee on National Defence and the Armed Forces, it was revealed that the demonstrator is expected to be launched in 2028 and has a total project cost of €70 million, with Dassault providing more than half of the funding and the remainder coming from the French government.
The VORTEX-S is expected to follow the VORTEX-D demonstrator. This larger, more complex variant will be developed in partnership with OHB following the finalisation of the 11 May agreement, as the companies seek to secure ESA backing for the project. According to the release announcing the partnership, discussions are also underway with other major European space companies to “expand the team.”
Dassault will remain the lead contractor, building the mini-shuttle. OHB will build the service module. The hope is that later versions of Vortex could also ferry crews to and from space.
This project started in 2023, and initially hoped to do the first test mission to ISS in 2026. That test flight is now targeting 2029, with later missions slipping beyond 2031 and now targeting missions to one of the new stations replacing ISS.
Two overnight launches from SpaceX and China
Both SpaceX and China successfully completed launches since yesterday. First, SpaceX launched a new group of satellites for the National Reconnaissance Office, its Falcon 9 lifting off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. For security reasons, the number of satellites launched was not revealed.
The first stage completed its 9th flight, landing on a drone ship in the Pacific.
Next China launched another set of Qianfan (SpaceSail) internet satellites into orbit, its Long March 6A rocket lifting off from its Taiyuan spaceport in northeast China. Though China’s stage run press did not reveal the number of satellites launched, past Long March 6A launches of this constellation have placed 18 satellites into orbit. If so, there are now 155 Quinfan satellites in space, out of a planned constellation of as many as 10,000. The first phase of the constellation however only requires 648, which China hopes to reach before the end of the year.
The state-run press also did not reveal where the rocket’s lower stages (using very toxic hypergolic fuels) crashed inside China.
The leaders in the 2026 launch race:
56 SpaceX
25 China
8 Russia
6 Rocket Lab
For the third straight year SpaceX leads the entire world combined in total launches, 56 to 46.
SpaceX hopes to complete another launch later today, carrying a Dragon cargo capsule to ISS (on its sixth flight), but weather might force a scrub. UPDATE: Scrubbed due to weather, rescheduled for May 13, 2026.
Both SpaceX and China successfully completed launches since yesterday. First, SpaceX launched a new group of satellites for the National Reconnaissance Office, its Falcon 9 lifting off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. For security reasons, the number of satellites launched was not revealed.
The first stage completed its 9th flight, landing on a drone ship in the Pacific.
Next China launched another set of Qianfan (SpaceSail) internet satellites into orbit, its Long March 6A rocket lifting off from its Taiyuan spaceport in northeast China. Though China’s stage run press did not reveal the number of satellites launched, past Long March 6A launches of this constellation have placed 18 satellites into orbit. If so, there are now 155 Quinfan satellites in space, out of a planned constellation of as many as 10,000. The first phase of the constellation however only requires 648, which China hopes to reach before the end of the year.
The state-run press also did not reveal where the rocket’s lower stages (using very toxic hypergolic fuels) crashed inside China.
The leaders in the 2026 launch race:
56 SpaceX
25 China
8 Russia
6 Rocket Lab
For the third straight year SpaceX leads the entire world combined in total launches, 56 to 46.
SpaceX hopes to complete another launch later today, carrying a Dragon cargo capsule to ISS (on its sixth flight), but weather might force a scrub. UPDATE: Scrubbed due to weather, rescheduled for May 13, 2026.
Metallica – Halo On Fire
May 11, 2026 Quick space links
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay. Reader Nate P also sent me the second link. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
- SpaceX ends its Starlink reseller program
Apparently a lot of those resellers were “bad actors.”
- Rocket startup Aetherflux renames itself Cowboy Space
It wants to build both its own rocket and its own orbiting data centers, and has raised $275 million in private investment capital to do so.
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay. Reader Nate P also sent me the second link. This post is also an open thread. I welcome my readers to post any comments or additional links relating to any space issues, even if unrelated to the links below.
- SpaceX ends its Starlink reseller program
Apparently a lot of those resellers were “bad actors.”
- Rocket startup Aetherflux renames itself Cowboy Space
It wants to build both its own rocket and its own orbiting data centers, and has raised $275 million in private investment capital to do so.
Springtime on the residual icecap of the Martian south pole
Click for original image.
Cool image time! The picture to the right, cropped and rotated so that north is to the top, was taken on March 28, 2026 by the high resolution camera of Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO).
It shows what the science team labels a “south polar residual cap site.” The location is about 200 miles from the Martian south pole, well within the south polar ice cap. A second picture of this same spot was taken only a few days later, and was labeled “bright and dark fans on patterned ground.” With the second image the science team added their nickname for this location, “Troy,” which makes referencing it easier.
The hatchwork is the mystery here. In fact, the scientists have been monitoring this geology since 2020 to see if there have been any changes, either long term or seasonally. Almost certainly they have spotted seasonal changes, as indicated by the hatchwork itself and explained below, but I don’t access to the higher resolution images that would show any major modifications on a larger scale.
» Read more
Click for original image.
Cool image time! The picture to the right, cropped and rotated so that north is to the top, was taken on March 28, 2026 by the high resolution camera of Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO).
It shows what the science team labels a “south polar residual cap site.” The location is about 200 miles from the Martian south pole, well within the south polar ice cap. A second picture of this same spot was taken only a few days later, and was labeled “bright and dark fans on patterned ground.” With the second image the science team added their nickname for this location, “Troy,” which makes referencing it easier.
The hatchwork is the mystery here. In fact, the scientists have been monitoring this geology since 2020 to see if there have been any changes, either long term or seasonally. Almost certainly they have spotted seasonal changes, as indicated by the hatchwork itself and explained below, but I don’t access to the higher resolution images that would show any major modifications on a larger scale.
» Read more
Psyche approaches Mars
Click for original image.
The asteroid probe Psyche is now approaching Mars for a May 15, 2026 fly-by that will slingshot it out to the metal asteroid Psyche in 2029.
The image to the right, cropped and expanded to post here, was taken on May 3, 2026 when the spacecraft was still about three million miles away.
The observation was acquired by the multispectral imager instrument’s panchromatic or broadband filter, with an exposure time of just 2 milliseconds. Even with this very short exposure time, the crescent is extremely bright and parts of the image are oversaturated. The light seen here is sunlight reflected off the surface of Mars and also scattered by dust particles in its atmosphere. Because the quantity of dust in the atmosphere can vary rapidly over time, the anticipated brightness of the crescent was hard to predict before this early image was acquired.
The dustiness of Mars leads to sunlight being scattered by its atmosphere, making the crescent appear to extend farther around the planet than if it had no atmosphere (as with our Moon).Of note, on the right side of the extended crescent, there appears to be a gap, which coincides with the planet’s icy north polar cap. The cap is currently in winter and mission specialists hypothesize that seasonal clouds and hazes may be forming in that region, possibly blocking the atmospheric dust’s ability to scatter sunlight like it does elsewhere around the planet.
Though the spacecraft had had a thruster issue last year, all seems well at this time.
Click for original image.
The asteroid probe Psyche is now approaching Mars for a May 15, 2026 fly-by that will slingshot it out to the metal asteroid Psyche in 2029.
The image to the right, cropped and expanded to post here, was taken on May 3, 2026 when the spacecraft was still about three million miles away.
The observation was acquired by the multispectral imager instrument’s panchromatic or broadband filter, with an exposure time of just 2 milliseconds. Even with this very short exposure time, the crescent is extremely bright and parts of the image are oversaturated. The light seen here is sunlight reflected off the surface of Mars and also scattered by dust particles in its atmosphere. Because the quantity of dust in the atmosphere can vary rapidly over time, the anticipated brightness of the crescent was hard to predict before this early image was acquired.
The dustiness of Mars leads to sunlight being scattered by its atmosphere, making the crescent appear to extend farther around the planet than if it had no atmosphere (as with our Moon).Of note, on the right side of the extended crescent, there appears to be a gap, which coincides with the planet’s icy north polar cap. The cap is currently in winter and mission specialists hypothesize that seasonal clouds and hazes may be forming in that region, possibly blocking the atmospheric dust’s ability to scatter sunlight like it does elsewhere around the planet.
Though the spacecraft had had a thruster issue last year, all seems well at this time.
China launches Tianzhou freighter to Tiangong-3 station
China today (May 11th in China) successfully launched the tenth Tianzhou freighter to its Tiangong-3 space station, its Long March 7 rocket lifting off from its coastal Wenchang spaceport.
China hopes to keep this cargo freighter in orbit for a full year, as part of its effort to reduce the number of cargo missions per year while expanding the capabilities of its spacecraft and station.
The leaders in the 2026 launch race:
55 SpaceX
24 China
8 Russia
6 Rocket Lab
For the third straight year SpaceX leads the entire world combined in total launches, 55 to 45.
China today (May 11th in China) successfully launched the tenth Tianzhou freighter to its Tiangong-3 space station, its Long March 7 rocket lifting off from its coastal Wenchang spaceport.
China hopes to keep this cargo freighter in orbit for a full year, as part of its effort to reduce the number of cargo missions per year while expanding the capabilities of its spacecraft and station.
The leaders in the 2026 launch race:
55 SpaceX
24 China
8 Russia
6 Rocket Lab
For the third straight year SpaceX leads the entire world combined in total launches, 55 to 45.
Vast signs deal with Lithuania
Artist rendering of Haven-1 with docked
Dragon capsule
The space station startup Vast earlier this week signed an agreement with Lithuania to work together on future space missions, either to ISS or its Haven-1 single-module station scheduled for launch next year.
Under the agreement, Vast and Innovation Agency Lithuania will explore opportunities for joint scientific research activities either in the International Space Station National Lab or Haven-1, scheduled to be the world’s first commercial space station, launching in 2027. The partnership also includes plans to further develop educational programs in Lithuania and deepen engagement with local industry.
This deal is similar to Vast’s earlier deals with the European Space Agency, the Czech Republic, Colombia, Uzbekistan, Japan, and the Maldives. All are structured so that should Haven-1 reach orbit and be proven operational and safe for occupancy, these countries could consider sending their own astronauts on missions there. All thus show there is an international market for a private space station, a market that Vast is working hard to capture.
In other space station news, Voyager Technologies, the lead company building the Starlab station, released its 2026 first quarter fiscal report, indicating a solid financial position resulting from its diversification into military-based space applications. Though the report notes that “Starlab does not generate revenue today, nor is expected to generate revenue in the near term,” the company’s overall strength lays a strong foundation for that station’s eventual construction.
In my rankings below of the five stations under development, these two stations remain essentially tied for first place, with Axiom a close third.
» Read more
Artist rendering of Haven-1 with docked
Dragon capsule
The space station startup Vast earlier this week signed an agreement with Lithuania to work together on future space missions, either to ISS or its Haven-1 single-module station scheduled for launch next year.
Under the agreement, Vast and Innovation Agency Lithuania will explore opportunities for joint scientific research activities either in the International Space Station National Lab or Haven-1, scheduled to be the world’s first commercial space station, launching in 2027. The partnership also includes plans to further develop educational programs in Lithuania and deepen engagement with local industry.
This deal is similar to Vast’s earlier deals with the European Space Agency, the Czech Republic, Colombia, Uzbekistan, Japan, and the Maldives. All are structured so that should Haven-1 reach orbit and be proven operational and safe for occupancy, these countries could consider sending their own astronauts on missions there. All thus show there is an international market for a private space station, a market that Vast is working hard to capture.
In other space station news, Voyager Technologies, the lead company building the Starlab station, released its 2026 first quarter fiscal report, indicating a solid financial position resulting from its diversification into military-based space applications. Though the report notes that “Starlab does not generate revenue today, nor is expected to generate revenue in the near term,” the company’s overall strength lays a strong foundation for that station’s eventual construction.
In my rankings below of the five stations under development, these two stations remain essentially tied for first place, with Axiom a close third.
» Read more
Katalyst completes final ground testing of its Swift rescue spacecraft
Katalyst’s proposed Swift rescue mission.
Click for original image.
The orbital servicing startup Katalyst has now successfully completed the final ground testing of its Swift rescue spacecraft, dubbed LINK, that it hopes will be able to catch the Gehrels-Swift Telescope and raise its orbit, thus saving the telescope.
During vibration testing at NASA Goddard, engineers mimicked the shaking the spacecraft will experience during its launch from a Northrop Grumman Pegasus rocket. In the footsteps of Swift itself and NASA’s upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, the Katalyst team also used NASA Goddard’s Space Environment Simulator for thermal vacuum testing.
Once the air was pumped out of this 27-foot-wide chamber, LINK experienced space-like hot and cold temperature extremes. The team also practiced firing the satellite’s three xenon-powered ion thrusters and deployed one of the arms.
After some more testing in Arizona, the spacecraft will be integrated in June onto Northrop Grumman’s Pegasus rocket — the last one in its inventory — and launched later that month.
Katalyst has never done this before. It was preparing LINK as a demo mission when NASA requested bids for saving Swift. It proposed reconfiguring LINK for that purpose, and won the contract in September 2025, only eight months ago.
If this mission succeeds it will be a big feather in Katalyst’s cap.
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Katalyst’s proposed Swift rescue mission.
Click for original image.
The orbital servicing startup Katalyst has now successfully completed the final ground testing of its Swift rescue spacecraft, dubbed LINK, that it hopes will be able to catch the Gehrels-Swift Telescope and raise its orbit, thus saving the telescope.
During vibration testing at NASA Goddard, engineers mimicked the shaking the spacecraft will experience during its launch from a Northrop Grumman Pegasus rocket. In the footsteps of Swift itself and NASA’s upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, the Katalyst team also used NASA Goddard’s Space Environment Simulator for thermal vacuum testing.
Once the air was pumped out of this 27-foot-wide chamber, LINK experienced space-like hot and cold temperature extremes. The team also practiced firing the satellite’s three xenon-powered ion thrusters and deployed one of the arms.
After some more testing in Arizona, the spacecraft will be integrated in June onto Northrop Grumman’s Pegasus rocket — the last one in its inventory — and launched later that month.
Katalyst has never done this before. It was preparing LINK as a demo mission when NASA requested bids for saving Swift. It proposed reconfiguring LINK for that purpose, and won the contract in September 2025, only eight months ago.
If this mission succeeds it will be a big feather in Katalyst’s cap.